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BMW Motorsport Qualifies 2nd and 6th for the 24 hours of Spa

With intermittent heavy rain and unpredictable conditions making warm up runs and qualifying difficult, BMW has managed to quality 2nd and 6th spots with the pair of GT2 M3's. Dirk Werner set the second fastest lap with a time of 2 minutes and 22.549 seconds. Ferrari took the pole in the number 78 F430 GT car driven by Gianmaria Bruni. The The Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours will start at 16:00 hours (local time in Belgium) on July 31st.

The M3 GT2's have been coming on stronger and stronger and the race will be tightly contested. The driving teams have been rotated and differ from the 24 hours of Le Mans teams. Dirk Mueller, Drik Werner, and Dirk Adorf will be driving the number 79 M3. Yes, that is a bunch of Dirks. Pedro Lamy, Jorg Mueller, and Uwe Alzen will be driving the number 78 M3. Best of luck to BMW Motorsport!

BMW currently has a one lap lead on the entire field at the halfway point of the 24 hours of Spa. The number 79 M3 continues to the lead the race and has set the fastest overall lap time with a time of 2:22.710. Rain once again came down hard and has been intermittent. 12 hours to go.

Comments from the drivers at the halfway point:

Originally Posted by Jorg Mueller (Car 78)

My stint was not particularly spectacular. At the beginning, large sections of the circuit were wet however we coped brilliantly with these conditions on the dry tyres. As a result, I was able to complete my turn without any unscheduled stops. As a driver, you obviously have to adapt to the darkness. You can no longer see where the dry spots are, or where there is water on the track. That makes it even more difficult.

Originally Posted by Dirk Werner (Car 79)

It was great fun leading the race, but the conditions were really difficult. It just kept on raining from time to time – sometimes quite heavily. Despite this, we decided to stay out on slicks. The Dunlop tyres worked very well in those conditions. The cars on wet tyres may have been a bit quicker, but we saved time on the tyre change. We obviously hope that it will dry out soon, as we are very quick out there.

BMW Motorsport finished in third and fourth place at the Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours. Normally, this would be considered a great result in a field that was so tightly packed. However, BMW led the race for over 20 hours. A victory was all but assured as the leading BMW had a 2 lap margin on the trailing Porsche. Suddenly the left-front track rod gave out and the M3 crashed into the barriers. The damage was repaired in the pits but by that time the lead was lost with no time left to recoup it.

This is a huge disappointment for a BMW team that dominated the race. The M3's even ran 1st and 2nd at one point before conditions became very harsh. Even with the 3rd place finish BMW still has the most victories at this endurance race with 21 to its name.

What the drivers had to say:

Originally Posted by Dirk Werner (Car 79)

The disappointment is huge. I had already slowed down, so as not to take any risks and bring us home safely in first place, when the track rod suddenly broke and landed me in the crash barriers. I made it back into the pits, but the victory was gone. The car was really class, particularly in dry conditions. We really had a great race – until the last 40 minutes

Originally Posted by Dirk Mueller (Car 79)

We worked very well together as a team over the weekend. Our car ran without any technical problems and we were able to complete what we set out to achieve. What happened next is something I have never experienced before in my life. We mastered the challenges of Spa very well with just three drivers.

Originally Posted by Dirk Adorf (Car 79)

t was very special for me to be able to race for BMW at this classic. Initially the weather did not play ball. However, when it dried out again we produced a great performance. I had brilliant team-mates and we did not make any mistakes. Had we had the mishap in the third hour of the race, we could have caught up. So close to the end of the race, there is simply nothing you can do about it.

Originally Posted by Jorg Mueller (Car 78)

This race really was not easy. Firstly, the air conditioning in the cockpit did not function correctly, which made it really tiring for us drivers. Despite this, we still found our rhythm and consistently made up ground over the course of the race. This was my third 24-hour race this year, and I have to say: this race was the toughest of them all

Originally Posted by Pedro Lamy (Car 78)

The start phase did not go to plan for us. Two long stops for repairs cost us time, which we were unable to make up over the course of the race. That is a real shame, as we could have achieved a lot with this car. That is racing. Sometimes you can dominate proceedings and still not end up on the top of the podium. The pendulum is bound to swing back in our direction.

Originally Posted by Uwe Alzen (Car 78)

That was one of the toughest races of my career. We had a few problems with the air supply in the cockpit. This made the Spa circuit, which is already a tiring one, an even greater challenge. After the long pit stops at the start of the race, we fought back brilliantly. I feel very sorry for my team-mates in the other car, who were denied victory so close to the end of the race.